MASTERPIECE SQUARE WHEEL «CUBE»

BASELWORLD 2014 NOVELTY : AVAILABLE SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER

A square wheel? It sounds a crazy concept, especially when you consider that it was expec- ted to turn and interface with another wheel located adjacent and that second wheel was clover-shaped. However, Michel Vermot, a watchmaker and engineer at Maurice Lacroix, invented this concept.
The teeth on the two unusually...

BASELWORLD 2014 NOVELTY : AVAILABLE SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER

MASTERPIECE SQUARE WHEEL «CUBE»

Inside the MASTERPIECE SQUARE WHEEL «CUBE»

A square wheel? It sounds a crazy concept, especially when you consider that it was expec- ted to turn and interface with another wheel located adjacent and that second wheel was clover-shaped. However, Michel Vermot, a watchmaker and engineer at Maurice Lacroix, invented this concept.

The teeth on the two unusually shaped wheels would have to mesh perfectly to ensure reliable operation. Each tooth would require a unique angle to engage faultlessly without any loss in power transmission. Initially, the technology to create the unusually shaped, and very com- plex, wheels did not exist and the idea was simply recorded on paper.

Subsequently, LIGA (a German acronym for Lithographie, Galvanoformung, Abformung), a a state-of the art process, provided the solution for creating the small unusually shaped wheels. In collaboration with the Haute Ecole Arc, based in Le Locle, the ground-breaking design became a reality.

The charm of the “CUBE” is the manner in which it displays four functions in a thought- provoking package. Whereas hours and minutes are communicated with conventional hands, the small seconds display is delivered courtesy of a trailing square wheel with a luminous tip at its centre.

A power-reserve indicator completes the array of functions delivered. The resultant dial area encourages discussion with its creative design, but remains a wearable watch.

A large sapphire-crystal caseback reveals the sophistication of the Maurice Lacroix automatic manufacture Calibre ML 156, the 10th manufacture movement created by Maurice Lacroix. It is presented with Grand Colimaçon decoration, features 249 movement components, a swan-neck regulator and screwed balance.

This impressive specification stands testament to the exemplary craftsmanship practised by Maurice Lacroix in its desire to meet the demands of the most discerning clientele.